Dismantling the Global Terror Network
Dismantling the Global Terror Network
The 9/11 terror attacks on American soil were not just acts of war against the United States, but also an attack on human dignity and principles of liberty for all peace-loving people throughout the world. Ever since, the United States, along with her Coalition partners, has acted on their resolve to win the war by holding to account the perpetrators of terrorism and by remaining high on alert to scuttle plans aimed at initiating similar attacks (Kenney, 2010), be it at home or abroad. However, if there is one thing that the recent terror attacks on Brussels and Paris have taught us, it is that we should not be content with staying alert to prevent acts of terrorism from happening, but we should devise elaborate plans that involve various law enforcement and intelligence agencies to dismantle the global terror network.
Global terrorism appears to have grown in reaps and bounds, despite concerted efforts by respective national governments to deal with this menace of the 21st century. Over the past five years, the number of deaths due to acts of terrorism across the globe has increased by almost 800 percent, based on the findings of a new report by the IPT (Investigative Project on Terrorism). According to this report, only five years ago, some 3,284 deaths were attributed to Islamist terror attacks. However, today, that figure has increased significantly to 28,708 per year (Emerson & Hoekstra, 2016). The massacres in Paris and Brussels are a clear indication of the devastating and heightening threat posed by global terrorism as perpetrated by radical Islamists globally.
The IPT report further paints a gloomy picture of the global terror network if nothing is done urgently to contain the situation. In particular, the analysis projects an increase in Islamist attacks on Europe in the coming 24 months. It also predicts a geographical and numerical expansion in terrorism in Africa, and states in the Middle East such as Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Jordan are at an increased risk of encountering further destabilization in the hands of radical Islamists (Emerson & Hoekstra, 2016).
It is important to note that terror groups are also changing their strategy of how they execute their attacks, including mode of recruiting and devising novel means of bypassing existing security measures. Grubbs (2016) reports that the Islamic State has turned to social media and internet propaganda as its new tools for recruiting new members. With the ubiquitous nature of the internet, it becomes fairly easier to propagate relentless messages of terrorism to attack, for example, interests of the United States, be it on home soil, or abroad. Various foreign terrorist organisations rely on different digital communication platforms as they seek to reach out to individuals that they feel would be sympathetic and susceptible to their messages of terrorism.
In addition, the terror groups have also been following keenly the events in the build-up to the 2016 American presidential elections, especially as the candidates laid out their proposed plans of dismantling the global terror network. On her part, the Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has laid out her commitment to pursuing a detailed counter-terrorism strategy that “embeds our mission against ISIS within a broader struggle against radical jihadist terrorism that is bigger than any one group, whether it's Al-Qaeda or ISIS or some other network” (Clinton and 117). However, Clinton is quick to admit that that the war on dismantling global terrorism will not be easy at all, considering that it involves waging war against a generational struggle characterized by a deeply-rooted ideology.
Clinton, nonetheless, identifies three key components of her proposed comprehensive counter-terrorism strategy: (i) to make sure that the ISIS are defeated in their strongholds namely, Ira q and Syria, and other parts of the middle East; (ii) to dismantle and disrupt the existing global terrorist infrastructure that permits the flow of finances, fighters, propaganda, and arms, across the globe (Clinton & Kaine, 118); and (iii) to reinforce the United States' defenses and those of her allies against homegrown and external threats (Clinton & Kaine, 2016).
On the other hand, President- elect Donald Trump, during his presidential campaign, advocated for a strategy that integrates limiting the number of immigrants into the United States and Cold War concepts (Sanger & Haberman, 2016). This includes building a war on the Mexican boarder to curb illegal immigrants, and “extreme vetting” of immigrants to establish their ideological stance. The comprehensive strategy that Clinton proposes makes a lot of sense. The ISIS, which is at the center of the recent global terror attacks, has a stronghold in Syria and Iraq. This can be achieved by supporting local and regional forces as well as pursuing a diplomatic strategy with a view to realizing political resolutions in the Middle East.
By seeking to defeat ISIS in their strongholds, we will in effect be nipping global terrorism in its bud. Finally, we should endeavors to involve various intelligence and law enforcement agencies, including the CIA, JTTF (Joint Terrorism Task Forces), FBI, and FRG (Financial Review Group) in efforts to identify the terrorist strategies of ISIS at home and abroad, surveillance of their online activities (Clinton & Kaine, 2016), and to freeze funding to terror groups, including provision of weapons.
In sum, if at all we are to successfully dismantle the global terror network, it is important that we adopt a comprehensive counter-terrorism strategy that seeks to disrupt and eradicate the ISIS and other terror groups in their strongholds, cutoff their sources of finances and weapons, and increase surveillance locally and abroad, especially their online activities.
References
Clinton, H.R., & Kaine, T. (2016). Stronger Together. New York: Simon and Schuster.
Emerson, S., & Hoekstra, P. (2016). Islamist Terror Growing in Lethality and Geography, IPT
Analysis Finds. IPT News. Retrieved from
http://www.investigativeproject.org/5241/islamist-terror-growing-in-lethality
Grubbs, A. Islamic State Most Adept Terrorist Group at Online Recruiting, Says FBI. Retrieved
Kenny, M. (2010). From Pablo to Osama: Trafficking and Terrorist Networks, Government
Bureaucracies, and Competitive Adaptation. Pennsylvania: Penn State Press.
Lappin, Y. How to Dismantle ISIS' Global Terror Headquarters. Retrieved from
http://www.investigativeproject.org/5284/how-to-dismantle-isis-global-terror-hq-in-raqqa
Sanger, D. E., & Haberman, M. (2016). Donald Trump's Terrorism Plan Mixes Cold War
Concepts and Limits on Immigrants. Retrieved from
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/16/us/politics/donald-trump-terrorism.html
Bibliography
Ankersen, C. (2007). Understanding Global Terror. New York: Wiley.
Bennis, P. (2015). Understanding ISIS and the New Global War on Terror: A Primer. New York:
Olive Branch Press.
Clinton, H.R., & Kaine, T. (2016). Stronger Together. New York: Simon and Schuster.
Emerson, S., & Hoekstra, P. (2016). Islamist Terror Growing in Lethality and Geography, IPT
Analysis Finds. IPT News. Retrieved from
http://www.investigativeproject.org/5241/islamist-terror-growing-in-lethality
Grubbs, A. Islamic State Most Adept Terrorist Group at Online Recruiting, Says FBI. Retrieved
Kenny, M. (2010). From Pablo to Osama: Trafficking and Terrorist Networks, Government
Bureaucracies, and Competitive Adaptation. Pennsylvania: Penn State Press.
Lappin, Y. How to Dismantle ISIS' Global Terror Headquarters. Retrieved from
http://www.investigativeproject.org/5284/how-to-dismantle-isis-global-terror-hq-in-raqqa
Sanger, D. E., & Haberman, M. (2016). Donald Trump's Terrorism Plan Mixes Cold War
Concepts and Limits on Immigrants. Retrieved from
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/16/us/politics/donald-trump-terrorism.html
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